Mom Of Boy, 6, Who Shot Teacher Pleads Guilty To Gun Charges: Report

NEWPORT NEWS, VA — The mother of a 6-year-old boy who police said shot his first-grade teacher at a Newport News elementary school pleaded guilty to federal charges on Monday, including using a controlled substance while in possession of a handgun, according to media reports.

Deja Nicole Taylor, 26, pleaded guilty to one count of being an illegal drug user while possessing a firearm and one count of falsely claiming she did not smoke marijuana on the background check form she filled out when she purchased the handgun in 2022 that her son used in the shooting, according to court documents.

Federal law prohibits users of illegal drugs from possessing a Firearm owners cannot use illegal drugs, and gun buyers must attest they are not drug users at the time they buy a gun.

The Washington Post reported Taylor's guilty plea, and noted that under its terms, prosecutors will recommend that she be sentenced to between 18 to 24 months in prison; the judge does not have to accept that recommendation. Taylor is scheduled to be sentenced Oct. 18.

Taylor still faces state charges of felony child neglect and a misdemeanor count of recklessly storing a firearm so a child could gain access to it. She is set to go to trial on those charges Aug. 15.

According to police, Taylor's son used his mother's 9mm handgun to shoot Richneck Elementary School teacher Abigail Zwerner on Jan. 6. Police said the boy took the gun to school, pulled it from his backpack, and used it to shoot Zwerner.

Soon after the shooting, the Taylor family said in a statement that the 9mm handgun was kept on the top shelf of Taylor’s bedroom closet with a trigger lock in place. The Post reported that documents filed with the plea deal indicated investigators found no lock box, trigger lock or trigger lock key during a search of Taylor’s residences.

Newport News Police Chief Steve Drew has repeatedly characterized the shooting as "intentional," saying the boy aimed at Zwerner and fired one round, striking her in the hand and chest. The shot resulted in severe injuries, including a lung collapse.

In a statement released shortly after the shooting, the boy's family said their son suffered from an acute disability and was under a care plan at the school.

Last month, Taylor claimed responsibility for the shooting in an interview with "Good Morning America" while revealing her son's ADHD diagnosis. Taylor described her son as a "great" but "very energetic" kid, according to the interview.

"I am, as a parent, obviously willing to take responsibility for him because he can't take responsibility" for himself, she said in the interview.

Taylor also said her son "really liked" Zwerner and stated the boy told her "he felt like he was being ignored" the week of the shooting.

Zwerner has filed a $40 million lawsuit alleging school administrators ignored multiple warnings that the boy had a history of random violence and posed a threat to teachers and other students, according to the lawsuit.

In response to Zwerner's lawsuit, Newport News school officials argued that a court doesn't have jurisdiction and filed a motion to dismiss the case. In the motion, school officials said the possibility of violence in the classroom is a risk all teachers take.

"While in an ideal world, young children would not pose any danger to others, including their teachers, this is sadly not reality," the motion stated.

READ MORE:

• VA Boy 'Really Liked' Teacher He Shot, Mother Says
  
• VA School Board Wants Abigail Zwerner's $40M Lawsuit Tossed
• Mother Of Boy, 6, Who Shot VA Teacher Was Depressed, Attorney Says
• VA School Where Boy, 6, Shot Teacher At Center Of Criminal Probe
• Mother Of VA 6-Year-Old Indicted After Elementary School Shooting
• 'I Thought I Had Died': VA Teacher Recounts Classroom Shooting
• Boy, 6, Showed Classmates Gun Before VA Teacher Was Shot: Report
• Boy, 6, Choked Another Teacher 'Until She Couldn't Breathe': Lawyer
• VA Principal Didn't Know 6-Year-Old Had Gun, Lawyer Says: Report
• Superintendent Fired After VA Teacher Shot In Classroom: Report
• VA Teacher Shot By 6-Year-Old To Sue Newport News School District
• School Downplayed 6-Year-Old's Behavior Before VA Shooting: Report
• Gun Used To Shoot VA Teacher Locked, Stored On Top Shelf: Attorney
• Angry Parents, Teachers Say Schools Failed To Protect Staff, Kids
• Newport News Shooting: Can 6-Year-Old's Mother Be Charged?
• 6-Year-Old Used Mom's Gun To Shoot Teacher: VA Police Chief
• Newport News School Shooting: 6-Year-Old Shoots Teacher In Classroom